Base-ball bat.



Patent ed October 4, i9o4.

JOHN A. HILLERICH, OF LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY.

BASE-BALL BAT.

SPECIFICATION formingpart of Letters Patent N o. '771,247, dated October 4, 1904. Application filed .Tune 8, 1904. Serial No. 211,694. (No model.)

To (ll whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN A. HILLERICH, a citizen of the United States, residing at Louisville, in the county of J eiferson and State of Kentucky, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Base-Ball Bats, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to base-ball bats, and has for its object to lessen the hitting of fouls by the batsman and enable him to make a greater proportion of fair balls and safe hits. Such object is of growing importance,the tendency of the rules of the game being to more and more heavily penalize the hitting of fouls. According to the present rules, of comparatively recent adoption, the first two fouls are counted as strikes, and the making of fouls, whether caught or not, tends greatly to putting the batsman out. The striking of such undesirable balls is caused by the ready glancing of the bat and ball one from the other unless the ball is exactly in or very near the plane in which the bat is swung by the hatsman in making his stroke at the time When it is encountered by the bat. the use of my improvement in the bat such glancing is materially prevented or lessened, with the result that a stroke which with an ordinary bat would produce a foul Will by the use of the improved bat produce a fair hit, with the chance that it will be a safe hit either in the outfield or the infield. As a further result this improves the game and the interest which it has for the spectators.

My improvement is carried into efiect by and it consists in a peculiar formation of the striking-surface of the bat, which is hereinafter described, and pointed out in the claim.

In order to make the invention more clearly understood, I have shown in the accompanying drawings means for carrying the same into practical effect without limiting my improvement in its useful applications to the particular construction, Which for the purposes of illustration I have delineated.

In said drawings, Figure lis an elevation of a base-ball bat embodying the invention. Fig. 2 is a similar View of a portion of the bat on a larger scale. Fig. 3 is a sectional View on line III of Fig. 2. In the illustrations the described points are shown conventionally. In fact, they are preferably on helical lines.

Referring to the drawings, A indicates the bat as a whole, of which a is the handle, and B the ball-striking portion. The surface of this latter is formed at intervals with points so arranged that they are not presented toward a ball which is struck fairly by the middle of the bat, but such a ball is struck and propelled in the usual manner as by the ordinary batting-surface, but that they are presented toward the surface of a ballwhich encounters the bat off the center or middle of the forward side of the bat, and the more such ball is oti' the center the more directly are such points b presented to it. The result of this is that the ball is engaged and held by the point-s to a material degree and in such manner as to greatly lessen the glancing of the ball and the making of foul hits. W'hile the surface of the ordinary base-ball bat can act only in a direction which is radially outward from the center of the bat, the said points may and do act in a direction which is more forward than such a radial line. For example, a ball C, Fig. 3, encountered by the surface of the bat at c can by an ordinary batsurface be propelled only in the radial direction indicated by the arrow 1, but by my improved bat-surface can be propelled in a more forward direction, (indicated by the arrow 2.) By forward direction I mean toward the field, where the ball Will be fair and perhaps safe.

The points Z) may be produced on or in the Wooden bat surface or portion B by any suitable means, either by removing portions of the wood to form grooves (Z in the front of the points or by forcibly pressing inward the Wooden surface of the striking part of the bat at the places mentioned. WVhile I prefer to have the handle a ofthe ordinary plain character, it may be Wrapped or finished in any suitable manner.

It has been demonstrated by actual experiment by professional batsmen that the use of the above-described bat will give a greater proportion of fair hits and of safe hits than relative to the bat, Whereby said points are will the ordinary bat and will give the user a adapted to engage a ball which is struck by better batting average. the bat off the center, substantially as and for In the drawings the points may be conthe purpose set forth. 5

5 sidered as somewhat exaggerated for distinct- In. testimony whereof I affix my Signature in nel I 1 presence of two witnesses.

iat c am 1sw A base-ball bat having its striking part of JOHN HILLERIQH' substantially cylindrical form and formed with Witnesses: IO points I) arranged around the cylindrical sur- N. LOW,

face and directed tangentially and forward J. S. BARKER. 

